Oczami Amerykanina: Święto Dziękczynienia

 

Choć na co dzień różni, w ten jeden, czwarty czwartek listopada stają się wspólnotą; przestają się śpieszyć i mijać przy drzwiach, a siadają przy stole i dziękują za wszystko, co ich do tej pory spotkało. Klimat powszechnej wdzięczności dopełniają rozmaite potrawy na czele z indykiem, który zostanie podany zaraz po rodzinnych modlitwach. 

Ta wyjątkowa atmosfera znana jest Polakom tylko z amerykańskich filmów, które świetnie odzwierciedlają realia prawdziwego Dziękczynienia. Amerykanie obchodzą je w różnych okolicznościach i z odmiennymi tradycjami, ale niezmienna jest wdzięczność, panująca w ich jesiennych domach. 

A skąd wzięły się ich dozgonne podziękowania? Wszystko zaczęło się od pierwszych dożynek mieszkańców kolonii Plymouth. W 1621 roku zorganizowali ponoć kolację, w trakcie której dziękowali Bogu za trudną, aczkolwiek udaną podróż do Nowego Świata, a także obfite plony, zebrane dzięki rdzennym mieszkańcom. Tak przedstawia się historia święta, które do dzisiaj jest jednym z najważniejszych wydarzeń dla każdego Amerykanina.

O swoich odczuciach i sposobie obchodzenia Święta Dziękczynienia, opowie nam amerykański student, Leon Cordier. 

When people from Europe think about American holidays and events, they mainly mention Independence Day or Halloween, but they don’t talk about Thanksgiving very often. The situation looks completely different from the Americans’ perspective, and that is why I would like to ask you one thing – why is Thanksgiving defined as one of the most important holidays for the American nation?

Leon:  I think one of the reasons is that it’s the quintessential Fall holiday in the US. Halloween isn’t really celebrated by everyone, and All Saints Day doesn’t have the same significance in the US as it does here in Poland. Thanksgiving is Fall for most people, I would say, and it marks the changing of Fall and then Winter and Christmas right around the corner.

Another reason I think is that Thanksgiving is steeped in American tradition in a way that others aren’t. We learn about it in school as a part of the foundation of the country. The Pilgrims, Squanto (a Native American advisor for the Pilgrims), making drawings and decorations of turkeys using our hands (hand turkeys), coloring cornucopias, and Thanksgiving plays. We do all this stuff from the time we’re in school. Even if the narrative of the holiday glosses over the real events that took place, Thanksgiving is tied to the start of the US and is continually celebrated. So in a way, Thanksgiving is the American holiday, if that makes sense.

Finally, although not unique to most holidays, it’s a time to be together with loved ones. It’s sometimes stressful, but usually it's good to see your family that you haven't seen in some time and to eat good food while doing it.

 

How do you celebrate Thanksgiving? Are there any traditions that you would like to share with us? 

Leon: To be honest, Thanksgiving in my experience isn’t celebrated with much fanfare. Usually you go to a relative’s house and eat food while catching up with one another. Some families might have their own traditions like preparing certain foods together, adding a religious element to the celebration, or even playing a game or two. However, there isn’t really one special thing that everyone does besides the feast. 

In my family, we would gather at a relative’s home, maybe bring some food that we cooked ourselves like a sweet potato pie, and then join the festivities. Thanksgiving is more like a party or get-together, people meet and mingle and catch up. Because my family is really into sports, we watch American Football throughout the day. But honestly, that’s about it. As important as it is, it’s not really that glamorous, and because so many different people celebrate it, it’s hard to put a finger on any one thing that people do besides gather with loved ones and eat “Thanksgiving” foods.

 

And how about ‘traditional menu’? A lot of people know that turkey is the essential element, but are there any other specific meals?

Leon:  A traditional Thanksgiving meal almost always includes either a turkey that’s been roasted, baked, or deep fried, or a roasted ham. There are stuffings that are sometimes used with the turkey or instead it as a side dish on its own. Oftentimes people roast an assortment of veggies as a side like potatoes, carrots, and green beans. Some other sides include stuffed bell peppers (the stuffing is regional where I’m from; bell peppers are stuffed with ground beef or shrimp), green salads, macaroni and cheese (sometimes baked), mashed potatoes, and various casseroles (like green beans). For deserts pies of all kinds are the norm: pumpkin pie, pecan pie, apple pie, and my favorite, sweet potato pie. Sweet casseroles are also common too. Other times people make cakes, or special treats like cinnamon rolls. Truth be told, every region does things a little different from the other like seafood pasta is common in New Orleans, so you might see different dishes varying from household to household.

 

Thanksgiving is a family holiday, but can we say something about exceptions? Is it possible for strangers to gather and celebrate together? 

Leon: While I’ve never heard anything about strangers celebrating Thanksgiving in normal circumstances, there are a lot of charities that deliver meals or provide places for people on hard times to celebrate the holidays. Usually Thanksgiving is a holiday for loved ones, but it isn’t out of norm for someone to invite a new friend or partner to their family homes or something like that. It’s also normal for people to have informal celebrations if they are not traditionalist, so maybe more a party than anything else. Sometimes, though, in situations like I am in now, people would be open to making Thanksgiving on their own, if they are away from their loved ones. Last year I hosted a little Thanksgiving at a friend’s house and we cooked a huge meal for people to come over and enjoy. With all that being said, though, it's not common for complete strangers to be invited to a Thanksgiving holiday.

 

Have you ever been to a parade? What does it look like?

Leon: No, I haven’t. I’ve seen them on TV or heard about them, but I can’t give a good description. I know there’s the famed Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade that has bands and big balloons of famous cartoon characters and has some celebrity stuff, but that’s all I know about it. New Orleans, where I’m from, is famous for its parades and so it has a Thanksgiving parade too. It’s tied to a local American football game between two colleges and features live marching bands. But, as I said, I’ve never been to one so I can’t give exact details about them.

 

 

Aleksandra Mierzwa